Shortbread dough. Shortbread dough (recipe). How to cook? Shortbread dough crumbles when rolled out

Using an oven is one of the most simple ways please your family and cook something unusual. Why we present to your attention another one - sand.

The scope of application, like any other type, is wide - cookies, pastries, pies, cakes. If you wish, you can even make baskets and put small portions of snacks, pate or something else inside. You just need to show your culinary imagination.

If it is considered difficult to prepare, then shortbread can be considered one of the simplest. With its own subtleties, of course, but still the recipe is not difficult.

If you have indomitable laziness of will, look for ready-made food on store shelves; semi-finished products always help save time. But I hasten to assure you that the savings are insignificant, since kneading the dough and cooling will take 30-40 minutes (and a third of this time does not depend on you, in other words, you will “carve out” 10 minutes), but it is always better to cook to your taste.

For the simplest recipe shortcrust pastry You don't need many ingredients: butter, sugar and flour. Agree, you can buy them almost everywhere.

Food preparation

Sometimes the recipe is supplemented with an egg, or even one egg yolk (since they contain a lot of fat, and this is exactly what is needed). In the latter case, separate it from the egg white, which can be used to brush the surface of a pie crust (for example).
The rest is the same as in the case of any other test.

Sift the flour using a sieve, giving it fluffiness to make it more crumbly.

The use of baking soda causes controversy, some extinguish it (wet it again lemon juice or vinegar), others do not. The choice is yours, I would recommend using ready-made baking powder (aka baking powder).

How to make shortbread dough

The first question that arises is how much of each product is needed.

After looking through cookbooks and websites (although foodkrot did it for you), you will see that there are basic ratios of ingredients in shortcrust pastry recipes.

A) first method: ingredients are taken in a ratio of 1/4:1:1.

It turns out - a quarter glass of sugar, 100 g. butter or margarine for 1 cup flour, without eggs. This option can be called universal, suitable for cookies and pies. As a result, we will have 300 gr. shortcrust pastry, respectively the same amount of baking.

b) the next option (one of the most popular) is when sugar, butter and flour are selected in a ratio of 1:2:3. The option is most suitable for baking pies.

A recipe for such shortcrust pastry often contains 1.5 times more flour than butter, and half as much sugar. Just estimate the desired weight of the finished product (let's say 0.5 kg of cookies) and calculate how many products you need based on the proportions.

V) Another combination of products is 1:1:2. Baskets, cookies and other sweet little things are most often baked from this composition. The same proportions of sugar and margarine (not a full glass per 100 grams of fatty base) and a double portion of flour.

The more flour you add, the denser the dough becomes and the harder the baked goods. Fats also affect the friability and softness of the finished product.

Quite often, for softness, 1 egg is added to the composition for every 250 grams. flour (about one and a half cups 250 ml.)

It is allowed to use margarine instead of butter, as well as a 50 to 50 mixture. You can take a smaller amount, but you need to add a binding element (liquid or sour cream, but more on that below). For lean dough you can use vegetable fats

Eggs are added only to large portions of shortcrust pastry, and it is advisable to use only the yolk.

Sugar hardens the product and makes it even crispier. If desired, replace with powder to obtain a delicate consistency.

Salt (at least a pinch) should be added to any cooking method.

Baking powder 1/3 teaspoon, if making a cake.

Kneading

People use various methods of kneading shortcrust pastry, depending on the condition of the butter/margarine.

Frozen in the freezer is grated on a coarse grater.

Cooled to such an extent that it can be cut with a knife, but the shape of the briquette is preserved. When kneading, cut into small cubes.

In these two cases, you can chop the pieces with a knife into large crumbs, then dominate them with your hands. And right on the cutting board.

Soften the oil at room temperature. We get a creamy state, when cutting the briquette is no longer possible, it sticks to the knife.

Melt margarine, mix with salt and sugar. Then, after cooling slightly, add the eggs and the remaining bulk products. But for me, liquid cooked will not be crumbly, plus it will become tougher. It makes more sense than ever to mix baking powder into the flour.

The last two options are mixed with a mixer, spoon or hands in any convenient bowl.

If the mass turns out to be too dry and crumbles, a binding element is introduced.

This could be 2-3 tbsp of ice water; sour cream 1.5-2 tbsp; 1 egg yolk per glass of flour. Or milk, kefir, but with them the baking is a little denser, so it’s not the best option.

How to make shortcrust pastry for cookies

2 cups flour;
100 gr. margarine or butter;
1 glass of sugar;
1 egg yolk;
Salt.

1. Grind the oil with granulated sugar, a pinch of salt.

2. Add egg yolks.

3. Baking powder (if desired) and all dry ingredients.

4. Mix everything into a homogeneous (or rather uniform) mass, giving the shape of a neat lump.

5. Place it in a bowl and cover with film, or simply wrap it in it.
Place in the refrigerator for 25-30 minutes.

Cookies don't have to be sweet, they can be salty and spicy like snacks. Recipe Not sweet pastries the same, with the only difference there is less sugar (can be reduced to half a teaspoon) and take 0.5 cups more flour.

How to make shortcrust pastry for a pie

300 gr. flour (about two glasses);
200 gr. margarine;
1 cup sugar (or less);
1 pinch of salt;
2-3 tbsp. ice water.

1. Mix all dry ingredients.

2. Add cooled butter cut into cubes.

3. Using one or two knives, chop everything into crumbs.

4. The dough is almost ready, now you need to mix all the crumbs with your hands and roll the pieces into a ball, preferably not for long (1-2 minutes). The mixture has a smooth and moist oily and sandy texture (not always uniform).

5. The resulting ball, wrapped in cling film, is placed in the refrigerator for 0.5 hours to cool.

This is done for one reason, because it is easier to roll out cold ones. It is best if the thickness of the layer or layer is 0.5-1 cm, such baked goods bake much better.

Video recipe from the famous Jamie Oliver:

Baking shortcrust pastry in the oven

Use a glass, special molds, or just a kitchen knife to cut out the desired outline of the cookie (or shortcake). For cakes and pies using an inverted plate. And you can move on to baking.

In fact, you can not only cut, there is also such an option as modeling. For example, you place a thinly rolled round piece of bread in a mold for baskets, carefully outline the bottom with your fingers, and you can cut off the excess that protrudes beyond the edges. And you bake.

It is most convenient to roll out on parchment paper, cling film and the table surface sprinkled wheat flour. Just don’t add too much, otherwise it may burn during baking.

Place shortbread dough in molds or on a baking sheet, preferably without greasing (cookies, small products), since there is enough fat in the composition so that the baked goods do not burn.

When baking in layers or baskets, it is better to make punctures in the bottom with a fork. To prevent anything from swelling, place baking paper on the bottom and sprinkle with dry beans to maintain the shape of the basket.

Also, cuts are made on the dough in advance (half the thickness of the layer), along which it will be easier to break and divide the whole piece into small ones.

The oven temperature at the time of placing shortcrust pastry products inside should be 200-230 °C

Bake for 10-20 minutes (depending on the thickness of the layer), the surface should acquire a golden, ruddy appearance. Sometimes it takes more time.

How to fix shortbread dough

If the prepared dough falls apart when rolled out, then it may not produce normal, neat baking. But there is an easy way to fix this.
Put it in freezer for 10-15 minutes. Then knead (you can cool your hands with running cold water), add 1 yolk and quickly knead again. There is no need to knead for a long time, as the butter may melt and begin to fall apart again.

Shortcrust pastry recipe cheat sheet

1. Mix the fat base with sugar and salt
2. Get flour crumbs with margarine (or other fatty base)
3. If necessary, add a connecting element
4. Knead into a ball and wrap in film
5. Cool for 30 minutes

How to change a shortcrust pastry recipe

Over time, you will want to experiment more, some recommendations on this matter:

Grated lemon or orange zest, as well as chilled juice of these citrus fruits, will enhance the aroma and taste of the baked product.

Among the seasonings and spices, cinnamon, vanilla, and ginger are quite suitable for sweet baking. Cardamom, pepper, anise, cumin, saffron, nutmeg and coriander for a neutral or salty snack, tartlet.

1-2 teaspoons cocoa, coffee for color and aroma.

Honey 1-3 tbsp, cottage cheese 50-100 g. nuts (crushed, chopped), raisins, poppy seeds and even M&M's will add additional flavor to your baked goods.

Also, don’t forget powdered sugar, coconut, chocolate chips, crumbs or icing or confectionery decorations (as well as food coloring - green or blue cookies will at least surprise guests).

Treat yourself to baked goods every day, or at least on weekends, try different “shortbread” options, start small and over time you will choose your signature taste and composition for any holiday occasion.

Today I want to talk about shortcrust pastry. It really is the basis of many desserts. In fact, if you have a proven shortcrust pastry recipe in stock, you can already come up with a lot of options for using it. Shortbread? - No problem! Tartines with fresh berries, custard, chocolate mousse; Cheesecake base...Continue?

Shortbread dough is perhaps the most tender and crumbly of all. This is exactly what “melts in your mouth.” This is primarily due to the high oil content. Butter prevents the development of gluten in the flour, which gives this dough its characteristic crumbliness. But I know many people have this problem - shortcrust pastry cakes and cookies turn out hard. Why? Now I will try to tell and explain everything to you. To help you make the most tender shortcrust pastry.

Your failures may be due to the fact that you immediately combine all the ingredients together and knead them for a long time. And also, I suspect, you are overdoing it with flour. In this case, you naturally get a “sole”. But shortbread dough requires a more careful attitude.

For example, I prefer to knead shortbread dough by hand. It takes exactly the same amount of time as if I were using a combine. But your hands feel the dough better, and it is impossible to “knead” it. But if you are used to using a food processor or mixer, you can continue - just be very careful here. Once you have added the flour, turn on the processor only in manual mode and no more than 2-3 pulses - stop as soon as all the ingredients are combined. Otherwise the dough will be tough!

The standard shortcrust pastry formula is as follows:

250 g flour

200 g butter - cut into pieces and bring to room temperature

100 g fine sugar, or even better - powdered sugar

2 yolks (for even more tender dough) or 1 whole egg

A pinch of salt.

Here we need to make a reservation. I have come across recipes for shortcrust pastry in different sources with different butter contents - from 60 to 80% to flour, such as in the formula above. I baked the cookies you see in the picture using this formula. I can tell you from experience that the more butter you add, the more crumbly and fragile your dough will be. Now I’m not talking about the fact that it will be difficult to roll out - not at all, it rolls out perfectly in any case. I mean already baked.

If you like a firmer product, simply reduce the amount of butter to 150g.

And one more thing. Buy the best butter you can afford - without fragrances or fragrances. Still, the taste of butter is seriously noticeable in the shortbread dough.

But let's get back to the process. Combine soft butter, sugar and a pinch of salt and mix to a paste-like consistency.

Here you don’t need to beat the butter too much or saturate it with air, so if you use a mixer, it’s important to stop in time.

Then stir in the egg or yolks.

Sift the flour onto the table and, as usual, make a well in the center. Place this butter mixture in the center of the flour, and slowly start adding flour from the edges, kneading in a circular motion... (or turn on the processor a couple of revolutionsJ).

When all the ingredients are combined,

knead the dough 3-4 times with your hand (no more!) as if rubbing it on the table.

As a result, you will end up with a soft paste-like dough. You may even think that it would not hurt to add more flour. Stop! Don't do this. We will put the kneaded dough in the refrigerator (at least half an hour) - and certain processes will also take place there - the gluten of the flour will get stronger, and you can easily roll out your dough, even if you doubt it now.

Shortbread dough is usually baked at a temperature of 180-200 C - until a sure brown crust, as usual J. It usually takes me no more than 10 minutes. If you don’t want a crust, bake at 170 C - there should be no problems here.

Wrapped in film, shortbread dough will keep well in the refrigerator for a week. But I advise you to immediately make a double amount - it will last in the freezer for another 3 months...

Now, if you read everything to the end, you are entitled to a bonus! By adding several ingredients to the basic shortcrust pastry formula, we get completely different taste sensations.

For the chocolate shortcrust pastry- replace 30 g of cocoa flour (this is 2 tbsp) - sift cocoa with flour and continue kneading as usual.

For the nut shortbread dough- add finely ground nuts to the butter and sugar mixture - from half to a whole glass (to taste). Only in this case, increase the amount of sugar by a couple of tablespoons to balance the taste. Then add the eggs and continue as usual. Almonds are ideal for nuts, but you can experiment with walnut, with hazelnuts...

And also- flavor your dough with lemon or orange zest, vanilla extract, natural vanilla seeds, or any other spices to taste. For the specified amount of dough, 1 teaspoon of spices will be enough - add them at the stage of mixing butter and sugar (this way the spices will be better distributed).

In general, you get the idea - no need to chase recipes - knowing the basic formula of shortcrust pastry and the cooking method, you can radically change the taste of your cookies and tartines. Improvise more! Good luck!

Properly prepared shortbread dough is very tender and crumbly, literally melting in your mouth. At first glance, you might think that there are no difficulties or secrets in its preparation, however, this is not so. Shortbread dough has its own secrets, which it is in no hurry to reveal upon superficial acquaintance, therefore, at first, products made from it may not turn out to be entirely successful - hard and rough.

To avoid such troubles, you need to consider the following factors when preparing shortcrust pastry:

1. The friability and plasticity of shortcrust pastry is given by the large amount of butter it contains. If there is less oil than needed, the dough will turn out dense and hard.
2. In order for the dough to be very crumbly and tender, it is recommended to use only egg yolks for it (baking powder, in this case, you don’t need to add).
3. If the preparation of shortcrust pastry takes place in a hot room, then before preparing the products, it is advisable to cool it.
4. The table on which the shortbread dough is rolled out should be generously sprinkled with flour and the flour should be added several times while rolling.
5. The layer of dough must have the same thickness, otherwise during baking the thin parts will burn and the thick parts will remain damp.
6. Shortbread dough is baked at a temperature of 240 - 260°C. The most delicious and aromatic products are those that acquire a golden color after baking, not only on the outside, but also on the inside.

Take 250 g butter; 3 cups flour; half a glass of sugar (or even better, powdered sugar); 2 yolks; vanilla sugar.

Mix oil with powdered sugar and beat everything together thoroughly, add the egg yolk, flour and finely grated lemon zest. Knead the dough, roll it into a layer, from which cut out cookies in the form of bagels using a thimble and a glass. Dip one side of it into the beaten egg white and immediately into the coarsely crushed nuts (walnuts, peanuts, almonds).

Bake cookies in a moderately heated oven until done.

And, in conclusion, one more piece of advice: if the shortcrust pastry recipe is intended for products with different flavorful fillings(for example, cakes, pastries, pies), then there is no need to flavor the dough itself. But it is recommended to add vanilla sugar or (lemon), cinnamon or well-crushed nutmeg to the cookie dough. You can replace a glass of flour in the recipe with roasted nuts ground into powder, or add a little cocoa powder to the dough.

What to do if shortbread dough doesn't work out? We offer a list of the most common mistakes when preparing baked goods, and ways to correct them.

• Dough too crumbly
• Shortbread dough too rough

Shortcrust pastry fails: 3+8 mistakes and ways to correct them

Shortbread dough too crumbly

Crumbly shortbread dough is good, but everything is good in moderation; what should you do if the baked goods turn out to be too crumbly?

1. Reduce the amount of fat, butter or margarine, maybe even by half.

2. Add a few tablespoons of sour cream to the shortbread dough.

3. Add a little cottage cheese or curd mass- for 200 g of butter or margarine there should be up to 100 g of cottage cheese.

Shortbread dough too rough

If baking from shortcrust pastry turns out too rough, “killed”, check yourself, perhaps you are making one of the following mistakes!

1. The quality of flour, if the flour has a high gluten content, shortbread will be rude. To avoid this, part of the flour must be replaced with starch.

2. Too many eggs. Alternatively, you can put only yolks in the shortbread dough, without whites; the more yolks, the more crumbly the baked goods will be.

3. Too much flour.

4. The dough was kneaded for too long; this is in no way acceptable for shortbread dough.

5. The recipe is broken, the proportion of ingredients is incorrect - too little fat, too much sugar, low quality margarine.

6. Unsuitable temperature in the kitchen when preparing shortcrust pastry8, if above 25°C, the oil separates from the total mass of the dough and the products turn out hard and tasteless; the ideal temperature for preparing shortcrust pastry is 15-20°C.

To correct this, you can cool it well, knead it again with cold hands, or, as a last resort, add an extra yolk to the dough.

7. Products of different thicknesses, this is important for shortbread baking.

8. Overbaked - if shortbread dough sits in the oven beyond the allotted time, even if perfectly kneaded, it will become rough and tasteless.

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Secrets and tips for delicious shortcrust pastry

Surely, you yourself exclaimed: “I don’t know how to bake pies and cakes!” What did you do wrong? Let's talk about the right mix shortcrust pastry and about its secrets, because how nice it is when the kitchen smells of delicious aromatic pastries.

Rules for delicious shortbread dough.

• The ingredients for tasty and proper shortcrust pastry must be cooled in advance.

Be sure to sift the flour onto the table. If you replace a third of the flour with potato starch, then the shortbread dough will become crumbly and especially delicious.

• As a rule, real professionals chop all the ingredients for shortcrust pastry with a long knife so that the dough remains cold as long as possible. Cold butter is cut into cubes.

Collect the sifted flour into a mound, make a hole and add butter, eggs, granulated sugar and other products that are included in your recipe. I recommend adding 1/2 teaspoon of vinegar to make the dough more crumbly. The main thing in kneading the dough is our palms, don’t rub it with your fingers, the dough doesn’t like that. To prevent the shortbread dough from heating up and floating, you should knead it very quickly. Once the kneading is done, put it in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

• Shortbread dough loves the cold, so it can be prepared for future use and stored in the freezer. When defrosting, you should not wait until the dough floats; let it remain a little frozen, otherwise it will not hold the shape of the intended baking.

The shortbread miracle is rolled out exclusively on the table, previously sprinkled with flour or powdered sugar. By the way, you can also roll it out between 2 layers of baking paper.

• Once the dough is rolled out and given the desired shape, quickly place it in the preheated oven. Shortbread dough does not like to wait and reduces its quality during baking if it is overheated at room temperature.

Sometimes shortbread dough turns out to be very greasy, so there is no need to additionally grease the baking molds, however, I have verified from my own experience that when baking baskets, it is necessary to grease the wavy sides!

Why doesn't shortbread dough work?

Basic recipe for shortcrust pastry:

• butter or margarine 200g
• granulated sugar 1 cup
• sifted flour 7-8 tablespoons
• egg 1 piece
• soda on the tip of a knife
• salt.

Let's look at a few mistakes made by baking lovers:

• Question: Why did the shortcrust pastry turn out to be inelastic and crumble a lot when rolling, and when baking did the butter come out a lot?

Answer: You kneaded the dough with warm ingredients: melted butter greatly degrades the quality of the shortcrust pastry, as well as the warm egg.

• Question: Why do the products crumble and feel rough after baking?

Answer: Because the dough was warm.

• Question: Why does shortbread dough shrink when rolled out and take a long time?

• Question: Why did the shortbread products turn out small, not fluffy, and hard during baking?

• Question: Why did the edges burn when baking the cakes?

Answer: Most likely, you did not roll out the dough evenly, and you did not turn the baking sheet with the cakes in the oven in a timely manner.

• Question: Why did the sand product turn out to be very crumbly and brittle?

• Question: Why are shortcrust pastry products like glass and very hard?

Answer: Because only egg whites were added, as well as a lot of granulated sugar.

Using these tips, your shortbread dough will always be successful, and products made from it will be tasty and beautiful.